North Korean Defector Yeonmi Park
North Korean defector Yeonmi Park, the young woman featured in Reason.com's article Yeonmi Park’s North Korean Defector Story, is a hero to many, although few people in North Korea will hear about her brave escape. It's doubtful that North Korea's security establishments would allow Yeonmi Park's story to inspire her peers since the media is state-controlled and Internet access is strictly monitored. Dissident writers, who may have reported Park's escape, have no options for publishing their stories.
Unlike defectors from other countries, Park has said that she and her family fled to escape starvation, not to find freedom. They were unaware of the concept of freedom; they had never heard of any other defectors who spoke of life outside North
Korea. The United Nations estimates that up to nine million North Korea's are in dire need of food aid, nevertheless, after hearing Park's harrowing tales of sexual abuse, it's uncertain if young women would attempt such a journey.
Park's passage to freedom lead her to China, a route used by nearly all North Koreans seeking an escape from famine. Once in China, Park's tale was familiar; face deportation and the cruel life of a North Korean prison camp if caught or fall prey to the many human traffickers operating near the North Korean border.
Would Yeonmi Park's tale of her escape, with stories of rape and thoughts of suicide, inspire other North Korean women to try for a new life if they could hear her story? After all, Park's tale has a happy ending, she is a student and an activist in South Korea, living the life she never dreamed was possible.
Unlike defectors from other countries, Park has said that she and her family fled to escape starvation, not to find freedom. They were unaware of the concept of freedom; they had never heard of any other defectors who spoke of life outside North
Korea. The United Nations estimates that up to nine million North Korea's are in dire need of food aid, nevertheless, after hearing Park's harrowing tales of sexual abuse, it's uncertain if young women would attempt such a journey.
Park's passage to freedom lead her to China, a route used by nearly all North Koreans seeking an escape from famine. Once in China, Park's tale was familiar; face deportation and the cruel life of a North Korean prison camp if caught or fall prey to the many human traffickers operating near the North Korean border.
Would Yeonmi Park's tale of her escape, with stories of rape and thoughts of suicide, inspire other North Korean women to try for a new life if they could hear her story? After all, Park's tale has a happy ending, she is a student and an activist in South Korea, living the life she never dreamed was possible.